Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery dollars paid out to minstrel group
Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery dollars paid out to minstrel group
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Minstrels complete in Athlone on 2 January 2017. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks
A report by Lawyers Dabishi Nthambeleni into a R27.three-million grant through the National Lotteries Commission to the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) to get a minstrels museum has discovered no proof that a museum ever existed.
The investigators observed which the CTMCA didn't use the R5-million allocated to get or produce a museum.
In addition they identified the CTMCA only bought land really worth R1.7-million, not R5-million as allocated.
They uncovered the CTMCA applied funds with the Lottery to get workshop gear from one of its possess directors, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how numerous rand granted on the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) by the Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) to setup a museum to celebrate the city’s loaded minstrel record went astray. The museum was never ever made.
The main points with the abuse of numerous rands of Lottery funds for any museum that by no means was are disclosed in an investigative report commissioned from the NLC in 2021.
The museum grant was A part of a lot more than R64-million in Lottery funds allotted towards the CTMCA amongst 2003 and 2017.
The main A part of the investigation, by law firm Dabishi Nthambeleni, was conducted in between September 2020 and January 2021 and focused on a R27.3-million grant on the CTMCA in 2014, which involved funding with the museum. The accredited finances for your museum was more than R12.eight-million, with R5-million of that allocated to get a building to accommodate the museum.
Examine the report (PDF, 7MB)
The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to analyze the acquisition of the setting up for the museum and whether the museum “truly existed”.
The agency was also instructed to investigate
the purchase with Lottery resources of two vehicles – a sixty-seater bus as well as a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
various equipment “acquired for the producing with the costumes and hats” to the minstrels carnival, for R5.4-million.
At time, convicted criminal Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director with the CTMCA. He was appointed a director from the CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued as two of quite a few administrators from the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed to be a director in May possibly 2021.
The investigation adopted comprehensive reporting by GroundUp in regards to the countless rands of Lottery funding allotted towards the CTMCA (see listed here, here and right here) and how the resources probably served finance the ANC’s 2014 election marketing campaign during the Western Cape, led by at enough time by Marius Fransman.
The constructing on the proper was the meant website of your minstrels’ museum, in the midst of an industrial location in Primrose Park, Cape City. Photograph: Raymond Joseph
In response into a Parliamentary issue, former NLC Commissioner Thabang Mampane stated grants to a few CTMCA “tasks” - such as the museum - involving 2012 and 2015. All three initiatives were finished, she explained to MPs.
Although the investigators observed no evidence that a museum experienced at any time existed.
In the beginning the museum was resulting from open up in rented premises in Crete Road, Wetton. A photo obtained by GroundUp from the supposed Wetton museum reveals a espresso shop with a few musical devices and minstrel costumes and collages of shots haphazardly hung to the walls, as well as a model ship on its plinth inside of a corner.
In its report, Dabishi Nthambeleni claimed it was “not ready” to confirm if a museum experienced ever operated from these premises.
Stemmet instructed the investigators the museum had been moved mainly because they could not afford to pay for the lease of R100,000 per month. He explained the CTMCA experienced acquired house for R1.seven-million in Schaapkraal for the museum, but could not get it rezoned, and were bought for a similar cost. Schaapkraal is in the peri-city place far from the city.
Because of this, the museum had been moved to a brand new place in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet told the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But after going to the premises, that are within an industrial spot, the investigators stated they doubted regardless of whether an appropriate museum existed there. Photographs hooked up for the report show a mishmash of randomly exhibited uniforms, musical instruments and various minstrel paraphernalia nailed on the wall, displayed on tables and unfold out on the ground, with no clarification.
“There is a small number of items with the museum [that] on no account stand for the more than a hundred-12 months heritage on the Cape Town Carnival, the investigators said, adding that there was “no signage outside the premises indicating they housed a museum and … normally, the museum will not search to be open up to the general public.”
The CTMCA experienced breached the grant arrangement, Dabishi Nthambeleni famous, by shifting The placement on the museum to an alternate site without the need of notifying the NLC.
The Schaapkraal home, on which no museum was ever crafted. Image: Raymond Joseph
Buses
Stemmet informed the investigators the CTMCA had to maneuver within the rented Crete Street premises as it experienced run up a R4-million debt with the town of Cape City and was concerned its equipment might be hooked up.
“Due to the lawful battles along with the debts, the organisation experienced to maneuver its property from five Crete Street to stay away from the sheriff from attaching the house of your organisation,” Stemmet instructed the investigators.
Sedrick Soeker, The existing director of your CTMCA, explained to them which the two buses acquired with lottery cash ended up stored in a very solution site “hidden through the Sheriff”. However the investigators mentioned they have been unable to substantiate that any buses had at any time been bought.
Stemmet also verified that the buses were concealed to prevent them becoming seized. But if the investigators questioned to generally be taken for the put exactly where the buses have been saved, he explained to them that “the owner of The key spot wasn't accessible to open up the premises for us”.
“The CTMCA couldn't supply proof of payment for two autos that it allegedly purchased with grant funds,” the investigators documented.
Soeker also explained to them the Schaapkraal property had been sold due to personal debt.
“Mr Soeker explained that In line with his comprehending, a result of the credit card debt owed to town of Cape City, the CTMCA made the decision It might be very best to sell their [Schaapkraal] residence … and to also to hide the property of the CTMCA to avoid the sheriff from attaching the home.”
JP Smith, Cape Town’s mayco member for safety and security, has Formerly advised GroundUp the CTMCA “threw revenue absent” on litigation with the town.
“On a yearly basis like clockwork, as we approach the top with the 12 months, the CTMCA picks a authorized struggle with the town, in excess of permits or something else. We under no circumstances initiate it. They retain throwing dollars away on vexatious litigation which they eliminate and have prices awarded from them. This can be entirely self-inflicted,” he explained.
Soeker explained to the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the principle part players on issues of Lottery funding ended up Stemmet and previous CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who were accountable for all the admin, funds and jogging ตรวจ หวย ลาว the CTMCA.” The investigators reported they were struggling to Get in touch with Momberg.
Hats
For the duration of their “investigation in loco” for the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “uncovered numerous equipment, some in good problem, some in poor situation and some that appeared rusty and very aged”. Stemmet explained to the investigators that there was also an off-web-site storage facility the place “instruments and many machinery” ended up kept.
“We requested him to get us to the facility but he was evasive to our request.”
Depending on shots and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, if not all, with the items seem like devices which was illegally faraway from the CTMCA’s prior premises. Stemmet is experiencing charges for this removal.
Based on the closing progress report submitted for the NLC by the CTMCA, the equipment was purchased from Martin-Conne Milliners, an organization through which Stemmet, his spouse and his daughter ended up administrators at some time.
The investigators discovered this “alarming”.
“In the CIPC search of Martin-Conne Milliners and the invoices submitted, we Take note the next alarming finding: Mr Stemmet himself is usually a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered tackle of the organization is five Crete Street, Wetton, Cape City, precisely the same address on which the museum was intended to be built and/or converted,” they documented.
An audit by accountants Kopano Included, hooked up for the investigative report, recorded the CTMCA was in the process of getting “equipment, plant and stock” valued at R8.1-million from Stalph 164 CC, trading as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was a close corporation of which Stemmet was considered one of the administrators.
According to Dabishi Nthambeleni, the business has paid R1.2-million as a deposit, meaning R6.nine-million remains to be owed, nevertheless there is not any payment date established for when this have to be paid.
The Kopano audit plus the close backlink in between the companies “suggest to us that there is ‘foul Engage in’ involved with the acquisition from the machinery on the museum workshop”, the investigators said inside the report.
“We find that it is remarkably possible that CTMCA utilized the funding in the NLC to ‘refund’ considered one of its most important administrators to the house at a better overpriced charge than the particular price tag and worth of the house and/or machinery.”
Tips
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it had been unable to ascertain how the grant towards the CTMCA were expended.
“Actually, a detailed report on how the funding of your NLC was applied, will be extremely hard as the CTMCA does not have any receipts, or evidence of payments to substantiate the quantities invested on Just about every product it asked for funding for. The interim report and last report with the CTMCA only connect invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.
The investigators uncovered which the NLC experienced not conducted a internet site take a look at right before approving the grant. But this wasn't standard practice at some time they usually uncovered no evidence of negligence by NLC employees.
At enough time, the NLC’s policies did not have to have funded organisations to submit evidence of payment with interim studies, they identified. This meant the CTMCA was capable of get a second tranche of funding without having to present proof that it had utilized the main tranche for its meant purpose.
Pursuing the appointment of a fresh board, commissioner and senior government team, the NLC has tightened up on these together with other issues.
Dabishi Nthambeleni advisable that
the NLC drop any upcoming funding applications in the CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any members who had been associated with the grant be subjected for the NLC’s “delinquency” method;
the NLC open a felony situation of fraud with SAPS or the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC begin the whole process of recovering the misappropriated money.
But, as an alternative to act around the report’s tips, the NLC – beneath its previous administration – chose to suppress it, mainly because it had finished Together with the former reviews into corruption it experienced commissioned.
GroundUp despatched questions to Stemmet and Soeker by way of SMS, and requested for e-mail addresses to send out the thoughts by electronic mail too. But no response were been given at some time of publication.
The minstrel “museum” in Crete Highway, Wetton. Picture: Raymond Joseph